Mexico: 'Knights Templar' member held on suspicion of organ trafficking

Police detain alleged cartel member on suspicion of kidnapping people, including children, and harvesting their organs

A confiscated iron ore mining operation near the Pacific port of Lazaro Cardenas, Mexico. Authorities say illegal mining is now one of the Knights Templar's top sources of income. Photograph: Eduardo Castillo/AP

Police in Mexico's western state of Michoacan detained an alleged member of the Knights Templar cartel on suspicion of organ trafficking.

Carlos Castellanos Becerra, Michoacan's public safety secretary, alleged that Manuel Plancarte Gaspar was part of a cartel ring that would target people with certain characteristics, especially children, for kidnapping and harvesting organs.

He did not give any specifics or present cases. He said investigators were looking into alleged cases that occurred in previous years.

"We have several statements in open investigations," Castellanos Becerra said at a news conference on Monday.

Plancarte Gaspar, 34, was detained last week along with another suspect in a stolen car. The men were carrying cash and crystal meth, Castellanos Becerra said. He said Plancarte Gaspar was the nephew of Enrique Plancarte Solis, a senior Knights Templar leader.

The federal government generally handles cases of trafficking linked to cartels, such as drugs and in the case of the Knights Templar, iron ore.

Federal officials were not immediately available for comment on Monday, which was a holiday in Mexico.

Mexican authorities have said drug trafficking is no longer the top source of income for the Knights Templar, which was once a top producer of crystal meth. Officials say the cartel's main sources of income are illegal mining, logging and extortion.